Hampson cautious but on track for profit April 6, 2010 Aerospace engineering group Hampson Industries said yesterday it expects to report a profit for the full year to the end of March, though it warned conditions are likely to remain unstable for the near future. The group added that it is now in the process of looking for a new chief executive, after current boss [...]
Max Petroleum drills well in Kazakhstan April 6, 2010 Oil and gas explorer and developer Max Petroleum has begun drilling on its KZN-2 exploration well in Kazakhstan, the third of three exploration prospects scheduled to be drilled by the company in the North Kyzylzhar II West Block area.
Findel boss Keith Chapman steps down April 6, 2010 Home shopping and educational supplies group Findel yesterday confirmed that Keith Chapman has stepped down immediately as chairman and director.
Double-dip is avoided but growth weak April 6, 2010 BRITAIN has managed to avoid the dreaded double-dip but the recovery remains weak and still faces serious risks, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) will say today in its first quarter economic survey. Encouragingly, the results show that the performance of the services sector is improving with most indicators now positive and making gains on [...]
US insists on a flexible yuan April 6, 2010 TIMOTHY Geithner, the US Treasury secretary, urged China yesterday to make its exchange rate more flexible, stating that it was in the Asian country’s own interest to do so. “As I said before and I’ll say it again, but I want to make sure I am repeating myself, I am confident that China will decide [...]
IoD: 50p tax harmful to state of public finances April 6, 2010 RATHER than improving the parlous state of Britain’s fiscal position, the new higher rate of tax will be bad for the public finances, the Institute for Directors (IoD) claimed in a report published yesterday. The IoD argued that the 50p tax rate, which came into force yesterday, would raise little or no tax in the [...]
BRC: Food price inflation slumps in March to its lowest level in three years April 6, 2010 FOOD price inflation fell to its lowest level in three years last month, according to the latest data published by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) today. The BRC said that food price inflation was just 1.2 per cent in the year to March – down from 1.3 per cent in the year to February, despite [...]
Construction grows for the first time since 2008 April 6, 2010 CONSTRUCTION activity expanded for the first time in two years as housebuilding underpinned growth in the sector that was hardest-hit by the recession, a leading survey revealed yesterday. The CIPS/Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the UK construction sector in March rose to 53.1, a sharp improvement from February’s 48.5 and comfortably above the 50 [...]
Britons put equity into their homes April 6, 2010 BRITONS ploughed £4bn into their homes in the last three months of 2009, new data from the Bank of England showed yesterday. The £4.038bn injected into homes was the seventh successive net injection of housing equity, although it was down from £5.1bn in the third quarter and a peak of £7.1bn in the fourth quarter [...]
FTSE ends higher on oil and mining after upbeat US data April 6, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares closed 0.6 per cent higher yesterday, lifted by firmer commodities after upbeat US data raised demand expectations, while Vodafone fell as Verizon merger talk cooled. The FTSE 100 ended up 35.46 points at 5,780.35, having earlier hit a fresh 21-month intra-day peak of 5,790.40. The index climbed 1.2 per cent on Thursday [...]
